Redeeming Grace

What a comfort this psalm is to anyone who has committed great sin! David shows us the way to abandonment to sorrow and grief over sin. His sins of adultery and murder found in 2 Samuel 11 and 12, result in an even greater repentance. His prayer has come down to us, the most well known of seven “Penitential Psalms.” Feel the soul’s upward movement, first humbled and purified by sorrow, then a gentle, peaceful lifting as the soul becomes open to the sweetness of being forgiven.

Notice that David does not wallow in guilt; this is self-serving and gridlocks the movement of the self toward true reconciliation with God. Only a gifted consciousness of God’s great mercy can lead one out of the depths of remorse into the light of God’s redeeming grace.